The Golden State Warriors are 20 games into the season, and frustration has officially boiled over.
Following a 104-100 collapse against the Houston Rockets, veterans Jimmy Butler and Draymond Green dropped a pair of blistering assessments that sent a clear message to the entire locker room.
Butler’s eruption first. Standing in front of the media, he didn’t ease into his frustration.
“We don’t box out,” Butler said, via NBC Sports Bay Area. “We don’t go with the scouting report. We let anybody do whatever they want. Open shots, get into the paint, free throws. It’s just sad.”
Minutes later, Green followed with an even harsher indictment of Golden State’s mentality and defensive identity.
“Our defense is s—t,” Green said. “Because it’s not necessarily the numbers. How do you feel when you out there? And it’s just letdown after letdown. It’s bigger than the numbers, you know what I’m saying? Defense is about demeanor. If there’s letdown after letdown, then it kills your demeanor, it kills your bravado, then you’re just a soft team.
“It’s bigger than the numbers. Like, what does the other team feel when you’re defending them? And right now, they don’t feel no force. Even if you’re getting stops. Yeah, we got great coaches, we gon’ have a good scheme. But what about the force? We don’t have that.”
What stings the Warriors most is that both veterans insisted the scheme and preparation are not the issue.
Butler pointed directly at the scouting board and defended Steve Kerr’s staff.
“I just think we need to do what we’re supposed to, be out there doing as players,” Butler said. “I don’t care what Steve says. It’s not on him, and it’s not on the coaches. Y’all can’t see (the board), but it’s back there somewhere. Yeah, they write everything up there for us to do, and they put us in the position to be successful. We go over it the day before, the day of. We got to go out there and execute, man.”
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